Whether you're going to Vegas, Los Angeles or heading out to the Midwest, there's a stacked calendar of great summer music fests. How, then, do you choose the one right for you (and your wallet and schedule)? We've gone ahead and organized some of the season's most impressive fests. So whether you're all about alt rock, soul, folk or some joyous genre mish-mash, we've got your summer plans already outlined. Just don't forget the sunscreen.
Summerfest
MilwaukeeJune 20 to 22, June 27 to 29 and July 4 to 6There's a reason they call Summerfest the "world's largest musical fest" — if you can run for three separate weekends for some 56 years, then you're clearly doing something right. But the appeal of Summerfest isn't just about its duration; it continually presents some rather compelling and multifaceted lineups year after year. The 2024 headliners alone include Mötley Crüe (June 20 to 22), Tyler Childers (June 27 to 29) and Maroon 5 (July 4 to 6). If that musical smorgasbord wasn't enough, Summerfest takes place at a couple dozen or so venues/stages citywide, giving you an excuse to meander across the many neighborhoods of greater Milwaukee. Summerfest is a proper test of your summer festival endurance, and if you make it through even one-tenth of the acts, you'll be more than entertained.
Must-See Headliner: Tyler Childers
Undercard Standouts: O.A.R. and MUNA
Essence Music Festival
New OrleansJuly 4 to 7Maybe it's not the biggest event on this list, but Essence Music Festival is still called the "party with a purpose." Because if you were just seeking out great music, the 2024 lineup once again delivers with performances from Janet Jackson, Charlie Wilson, The Roots, Raphael Saadiq and many more, plus Birdman hosting "30 Years of Cash Money" and Usher commemorating 20 years of his "Confessions" album. But Essence is so, so much more than just the music, and the event features everything from celebrity panels and workshops to courses on finance and parenting, all in the name of promoting "Black excellence." Then, if you somehow still need more to do, you're smack dab in the food and arts mecca that is New Orleans. Now, party like you really mean it.
Must-See Headliner: Usher
Undercard Standouts: Big Boi and T-Pain
Minnesota Yacht Club
St. Paul, Minn.July 19 and 20Admittedly, Minnesota Yacht Club isn't as big or as long-running as some of the other fests on this list. In some ways, it's a lot like the Twin Cities' take on our own Innings Fest (only with yachts and not baseball). That's because the two-day fest, which takes place from the scenic Harriet Island Regional Park, features a diverse (albeit '90s-leaning lineup) of Gwen Stefani, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Alanis Morissette, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts and many more. Similarly, there are some great features of St. Paul outside of the yachting and waterworks, with a rich downtown scene packed with great restaurants and gastro-pubs galore. Is it their version of Tempe? Sure, if you want to boil it down so simplistically. But if you like rock music and good grub, you'll pretty much be at home either way.
Must-See Headliner: Gwen Stefani
Undercard Standouts: The Hold Steady and Durry
Pitchfork Festival
ChicagoJuly 19 to 21Pitchfork Festival is, in all the ways that really count, one of the premier music festivals in the U.S. Over the last 20-ish years, it's served as a showcase for both up-and-coming indie acts as well as a slew of beloved legacy artists. Sure, there was some uncertainty earlier this year when the publication was set to be "folded" into GQ, with many unclear about how that restructure might affect the fest at large. But based on the lineup — which includes Black Pumas, 100 gecs, Jeff Rosenstock, Billy Woods & Kenny Sega and Amen Dunes, among others — it seems like the spirit of the Pitchfork Fest remains generally intact. Pitchfork is ultimately about a streamlined, frills-free experience for serious music-heads, and this lineup will show you exactly who you should be repping over the next several years.
Must-See Headliner: Jai Paul
Undercard Standouts: Black Duck and Crumb
Newport Folk Festival
Newport, R.I.July 26 to 28In 2024, the Newport Folk Festival will celebrate 65 maddening years. And in that time, the fest has been home to some massive moments in music history, including serving as the event where Bob Dylan "went electric" way back in 1965. But perhaps the most impressive feature of Newport is that it's evolved and expanded over that seven decades, and this year's lineup demonstrates that it's not just about great folk (even as that's very much still a feature). Between the soul-rock of Brittany Howard, the wonder that is Bertha: Grateful Drag, punk rockers Dropkick Murphys, hip-hop from Killer Mike and the country stylings of Orville Peck — plus folk from Hozier to Joan Baez — Newport has become a reflection of music's true time- and culture-spanning power. Newport is an OG like few others.
Must-See Headliner: Adrianne Lenker
Undercard Standouts: Petey and Shovels and Rope
Lollapalooza
ChicagoAug. 1 to 4Is it somehow cheating to have two separate fests emanating from Chicago? Perhaps, but no list about summer music festivals is complete without Lollapalooza. It is, in many ways, the pioneer of this genre of event, and while the fest no longer tours the U.S., it helps inform and shape not only the summer moods and schedules in the Windy City but is also a model for big events nationwide. This year, Lollapalooza's organizers somehow managed to pack even more musical goodness into the four-day lineup, with a suite of genre-spanning up-and-comers filling up the undercard. As for the headliners, there are some especially weird pairings, including SZA and Stray Kids on Friday and The Killers and Future/Metro Boomin on Saturday. While you should run to see as much as possible, it's another way that Lollapalooza makes space for everyone's tastes and still manages to present the gold standard.
Must-See Headliner: SZA
Undercard Standouts: Worry Club and The Last Dinner Party
Hard Summer
Los AngelesAug. 3 and 4How could you make it through the summer and not attend something to do with electronic music/EDM? Hard Summer is sort of the premier attraction for all your favorite house and techno-adjacent artists, and the 2024 lineup includes Disclosure, Fisher and Chris Lake, Zeds Dead, Major Lazer, Hamdi, Hedez, Infet and Level Up, among a couple dozen more acts. But there's also something to be said around the community surrounding Hard Summer and electronic music in general — a kind of subculture, if you will, that's got its own traditions and is generally open and welcoming to anyone seeking fun and connection. And unlike other events on the list, this celebration's only a five-hour drive. That makes all the difference when you've been raging all weekend before your 9 a.m. desk job.
Must-See Headliner: Disclosure
Undercard Standouts: Notion and Juelz
Outside Lands
San FranciscoAug. 9 to 11Sure, because it takes place later in the "season," you may see Outside Lands' own headliners elsewhere (including Tyler, the Creator and The Killers). But there's so much more working in favor of this unique fest. For one, it's got an especially packed undercard of talent, including Jungle, Young the Giant, Schoolboy Q, Amyl and The Sniffers, Chappell Roan, Slowdive and many, many more. Plus, there's always some special addition or other feature; in 2024, it's a Sunday night country set from none other than Post Malone. And, of course, few other locales feel quite as scenic and magical as San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. With Outside Lands, it's as much about the experience as the music, and this one's got few competitors that could ever fully match these vibes.
Must-See Headliner: Sturgill Simpson
Undercard Standouts: TV Girl and BADBADNOTGOOD
Fool in Love Festival
Los AngelesAug. 31Every couple of years or so, a new festival debuts that proves to be some combination of really novel or especially intriguing. And in 2024, that honor goes to the Fool in Love Festival, an event so insanely wild and packed with talent that one of the first Google searches is "Fool in Love festival real?" And it’s very easy to see why people might doubt a lineup with this much star power, including Lionel Richie, Al Green, Diana Ross, The Isley Brothers, Chaka Khan, Dionne Warwick, Morris Day and Kool and the Gang. It's nice to see a festival exploring a niche like soul, and to lean into legacy acts in a way that offers a different experience to balance out your usual summertime offerings. With a lineup this massively soulful, falling in love isn't really much of a choice, is it?
Must-See Headliner: Lionel Richie
Undercard Standouts: War and Cameo
Courtesy of Life Is Beautiful
Life Is Beautiful
Las VegasSeptember, exact date TBDNo, the lineup for the 2024 edition of Life Is Beautiful isn't out just yet, Does that matter? Not really. We already know that the fest has a solid pedigree, with the 2023 edition featuring Kendrick Lamar, Yung Gravy, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, ODESZA, Flume, The 1975, Nelly and many more. So we can probably intuit that the 2024 lineup will feature a similarly jam-packed roster of electronic, pop and rap music from exciting rookies and beloved veterans alike. We can also bank on the fact that it takes place in downtown Las Vegas, an audio-visual experience in itself that's also just a short distance from the pleasures of the Strip. So, yes a lineup would help, but Life Is Beautiful is one of those pillars of the season that demands to be experienced regardless.
